Major upgrades within the next month

Kryne

Honorable
May 8, 2013
20
0
10,510
Approximate Purchase Date: Now/End of the month/right after new years

Budget Range: total about $600-$650

System Usage from Most to Least Important:Gaming, School, Surfing the internet, Watching movies...

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: CPU, Mobo, Case, Power Supply (maybe)

Do you need to buy OS: No

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com pref, Tigerdirect

Location: Grand Rapids, MI, USA

Parts Preferences: CPU: Doesn't matter, leaning towards Intel
Mobo: Asus
Case: Coolmaster
PSU: Corsair

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe eventually (hopefully)

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 main screen, 1600x900 other (extended display)

Addition Comments: I have been trying to decide on Intel vs AMD for the past like 2 months for the CPU upgrade. Every time I decided I would switch. I think I have finally decided on Intel though. Only thing is with the new consoles being 8 cores could that help AMD a lot? Or Intel would still be awesome even with that? A few reason I'm currently decided on Intel are: 1) More focused on performance currently (didn't AMD say they were going to focus on APU and mobile CPU's now) 2) AMD's roadplan doesn't show any new FX chips or anything interesting. 3) I honestly like the mobo options for Intel chips a lot better. 4) I read a few places that there is a chance that Intels next CPU will use the same chipset so if I do decided to upgrade again in the future I can reuse motherboard (I realize it's only a chance but better on then Intel).

Why are you upgrading: CPU and Mobo I just want to get better, with Christmas bonus and a few other unexpected sources of income (house sitting and I have a for sure buyer of all old parts) I decided to do some upgrading. Also the mobo I got is only AM3 not AM3+ so I have to upgrade both if I want to do one :( Case: I got some extra hard drives and a blu-ray player and with a large GPU (7970) space was getting a little tight in my mid-tower. Also I'm not a fan of my current case. PSU: This one is last on the list, if people tell me I do not need to upgrade mines 120% fine for a long time I could skip this upgrade and get a better cooler or something.

Current Set up: (* by ones going to upgrade)
***Case: Rosewill Smart One ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147120
***CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808
***Mobo: ASUS Crosshair IV Formula AM3 AMD 890FX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131644
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148433
SSD: SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147192
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231568
GPU: SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7970 3GB 384-bit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202008
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099
***PSU: Rosewill Xtreme Series RX950-D-B 950W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182097

Parts I'm thinking about:

Mobo: ASUS Z87-PRO LGA 1150
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131979

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K Haswell
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116899

Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116901

PSU: CORSAIR HX Series HX750 750W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139010

Case: Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced Blue Edition (Actually just bought this one)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119213

With the two CPU's I was wondering if the difference in the i5 and i7 with hyper-threading would be beneficial with the AMD multicore thing, obviously not as good as 8 cores but would the 4 extra threads help out a bit? If not I'll go with the i5 for sure. I wouldn't be debating the i7 but it's $60 off retail price right now (so $290). That's the other thing, a lot of deals right now for Black Friday but will so deals come back as strong for around Christmas time or right after new years?
The motherboard I really like. Would it be worth spending a bit more money for Sabertooth or Maximus?
PSU I probably would not get if I went with the i7, but I wanted to make sure my current PSU would be able to handle an i7/i5 and eventually cross-firing hopefully. It's relatively old and it's off brand. Also that PSU I linked also $60 off so $89, which is a great deal.

Phew that was a lot, I really appreciate any and all input and for taking time to look through this stuff! If possible please be detailed in responses if you offer counter advice to something :) Thanks!!!
 
Solution
Go with the i5, as it should be plenty for gaming, and either the Z87-A/Pro/ Extreme series. Really no need for the sabertooth.